Vegan Cheesy Chickpea Dip with Coconut Bacon

You had great suggestions for sprucing up my Mexican Black Bean Dip. It was all about the garnishes: salsa, chopped tomatoes, cilantro, and tortillas were all great ideas.

This time I topped the dip with coconut bacon. (I will tell you about the delicious dip in a moment, but first: COCONUT BACON). This was not my first encounter with coconut bacon. I have tried it in many different iterations: lovingly inside a BLT at Aux Vivres, as a snack I brought to Burning Man courtesy of Phoney Baloney, and even a slippery, thick raw coconut bacon made from fresh coconut inside The Naked Sprout‘s BLT.

While I have made raw eggplant bacon before, coconut bacon had been on my hitlist for awhile. I even captured a picture of their ingredient list when I was at Aux Vivres. Definitely one of the benefits of them selling items to go. However, instead of using their ingredient list, I ran with Julie’s recommendation to add smoked paprika to the recipes floating around the web. It worked for the raw eggplant bacon so I was quickly sold on her smoked paprika pitch. It did not disappoint and I liked it better than anything else I had tried. The fact that it made so much is great because we are going to enjoy this for awhile.

But don’t let me distract you from this dip. A cheesy chickpea spread with smoky undertones, it was a fun salty snack I served at our tamalada. We had some delicious chips that needed a dip and this was a great choice. Everyone approved and Rob is adamant about bringing it back into our dip repertoire. I won’t stop him.. and to give him due credit, I only crafted the recipes, Rob executed them with finesse… and then I cobbled together some photographs. 🙂

With the Superbowl, Academy Awards and the Olympics on the horizon, this may be the dip-friendly part of the year. If you would like other delicious dips, consider these, too:

1. If you are anal, skin the chickpeas. It will take a while. You might start to curse, or give up altogether.

2. In a food processor fitted with its S-blade, add all ingredients except the coconut bacon, and blend until smooth. You may need to add more liquid but check the consistency before adding. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to ten days. For best results, allow to warm to room temperature before serving. Top with coconut bacon prior to serving.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the tamari, liquid smoke, maple syrup and smoked paprika. Whisk until smooth, making sure to get rid of any clumps of smoked paprika. Add coconut and stir until each coconut flake is evenly coated.

4. Bake coconut flakes at 325F for 20-25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Pay careful attention after 15 minutes, to not let the coconut bacon burn. Once nicely browned (but not burnt), remove from oven and allow to cool. Once cooled, can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature.

Wow – I love the sound of this dip, I don’t think I’ve come across anything like it before – particularly the coconut bacon. I’ve just got to give it a try. And an excellent entry for this month’s Spice Trail challenge. Thank you so much for sharing 🙂

Looks delicious – I think that dip would have gone well at our picnic last night – and glad you have had success with coconut bacon. I love it in a BLT or as a snack but have found it doesn’t do as well in dishes as tofu bacon. But every now and again I have to find coconut flakes just for some facon 🙂

Looks so good!! I have a cheesy smoky chickpea dip on my blog too! I roast my chickpeas first before making the hummus, and it brings out a more smoky flavor. I still haven’t tried coconut bacon but it looks and sounds so good, I really need to get on the move!

Gosh, this sounds highly intriguing! Coconut Bacon is a total newbie on me and what a wonderful set of ingredients go into it. And the dip sounds incredibly tasty too, thanks so much for entering your fabulous post to January’s ‘Virtuous’ Four Seasons Food event.

Your dips are driving me crazy with desire! What a great idea to use large flake coconut for the bacon. Making it raw is so labor intensive and yield so little bacon. Love your picture of your yield. Can’t wait to try both recipes!

[…] taste of cheese but can’t or don’t eat cheese then check out the Taste Space and her Vegan Cheesy Chickpea Dip with Coconut Bacon. Yes, that’s right – coconut bacon, made with maple syrup and smoked […]

I’ve been wondering about coconut bacon and whether or not I would like it…I’m not a huge fan of smoky things (and was never much of a fan of real bacon), but I do love coconut! I think if I found the right use for it – whether in a sandwich or a dip like this one, I might discover that I love it!

Eating it straight with your fingers is great, too. 🙂 Even without the liquid smoke, it is a fun treat. It doesn’t really taste like coconut although I think the coconut lends a nice fatty mouth feel, if you know what I mean. 🙂